FLAG DAY
★★
OUT NOW / CERT 15 / 109 MINS
DIRECTOR Sean Penn
CAST Sean Penn, Dylan Penn
Sean Penn’s latest directing gig gives his daughter, Dylan Penn, a solid showcase: through many earnest scenes she acquits herself well. The film itself is a fatherdaughter drama with a Terrence Malick-y romanticism but little emotional connection. Based on a memoir by Jennifer Vogel, it’s the story of a child’s (Penn Jr) endlessly forgiving love for her dad (Penn Sr), a petty criminal who becomes one of the US’ biggest cash counterfeiters. Jez and John- Henry Butterworth’s script is surprisingly thin; florid, self-consciously lyrical dialogue can’t hide a lack of truth to the characters. John turning from two-bit conman to master criminal gets little explanation and his daughter’s eulogising voiceover describes a man the film doesn’t show. The emotions feel as fake as the banknotes.